RWBY 3-0: We Fall to Rise
by Whitethorn23
Summary: A story in regards to the AU where Huntress Ruby Rose loses her legs and the fallout afterwards. 3.0 is an AU created by artist Dishwasher1910. Editorial credit goes to PsychoSensei and BlueSpartan107, feel free to check out their works on their profiles.
1. Chapter 1

**RWBY: We Fall to Rise**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the RWBY 3.0 universe, all credit belongs to Dishwasher1910. Editorial credit goes to PsychoSensei and Bluespartan107, go check out their works. All chapters of story shall be released in pairs. This is the story prologue and Chapter 1.**

 **Prologue**

 _ **Edelweiss Field Ops Command Center**_

 _ **Vale Airspace**_

 _ **8:30 am**_

"Ruby...Ruby, are you there—SAY SOMETHING, YOU DOLT!" Weiss exclaimed at the top of her lungs.

The hardened SRED Colonel had been screaming to Ruby for three whole minutes. Tears had begun to form in her eyes, which all present understood that their superior was worried about her. The only sound that they heard over the comms was silence, which had been on since the sound of heavy weapon blasts had occurred. Weiss was completely frozen still, the silence was the one thing that she wished would be gone from the comms. She was holding to the railing in front of her with shaky hands, worried about what had transpired. She then turned to one of the comms operators, took a breath, and ordered: "Keep trying to raise Ruby for one minute, then try to get a hold of Yang Xiao Long when that minute is up."

"Yes, Ma'am." The operator said as they began to try and hail Ruby over the comms. Weiss turned to the chair behind her and sat down, burying her tear-stained face in her gloved hands. One of her officers walked over to her, acknowledging the fact that her superior has had her confidence diminished. She asked the worried Weiss: "Are you alright, Ma'am?"

"No, Henley, I'm really not. I was the one who sent her to that location, and that new Grimm showed up, and now she has gone dark." Weiss said through her dry voice from her screaming. But before Henley could speak, another operator interrupted by exclaiming "We got a transmission from Xiao Long!"

"What did she say?" Weiss demanded as she leaped up from her chair and stopped at the railing with Henley tailing behind her. The operator responded to his superior's inquiry by explaining "She has Agent Rose, and she is requesting an emergency medical team to be in the hangar when she arrives."

"Colonel, Xiao Long's Bumblebee is heading towards hangar 3, and she's moving at breakneck speed." Another operator exclaimed.

"Grant, tell the infirmary to send an Emergency Medical Team to Hangar 3 as fast as possible. Henley, Guilford, you're with me." Weiss ordered, in which she received a "Ma'am" from one of the officers.

The trio boarded one of the many trams that made their way around the massive Edelweiss, riding to a small junction. They quickly boarded another tram, riding it all the way to Hangar 3, where they saw Yang's bumblebee just entering it. Weiss raced off the tram, running ahead of the officers who were working hard to keep pace with their superior just as a medical team that was moving a large gurney along with to the massive doors into the Hangar. But, when the doors opened, the sight that they had laid their eyes on was something that they feared. Laying eyes upon a tear-flooded Yang cradling her sister in her arms, with the area where her legs were supposed to be having been wrapped up in the older sister's coat, and a near-lifeless expression on Ruby's face. A large dark stain had soaked through, with blood dripping down from the coat. In that very moment, it took everything that Weiss had not to scream aloud in horror…

"Please…*sniff* You have to do something….YOU HAVE TO SAVE RUBY!" Yang screamed loudly.

* * *

 **Chapter 1:**

 **Beginning of Darkness**

 **Office of Colonel Weiss Schnee**

 **SRED Edelweiss**

 **Above international waters**

 **10:00 am**

 **1 Day before the incident.**

"RUBY ROSE!" Weiss shouted at the top her lungs. Every subordinate under the Colonel's command that was in earshot range knew what that meant. Ruby may have been the top operative of the SRED, but her constant slacker attitude and repetitive lateness always wore the Schnee's patience thin. At that moment, every crew member on the deck heard the running steps of Ruby Rose as they noticed a trail of rose petals were left trailing the young operative.

Ruby stopped outside the door, panting from all her running. She looked at the colonel, and the first words that came out of her mouth were: "You called?"

"For the second time, when you complete a job, you have to make sure to file the reports correctly," Weiss said, sounding irritated.

Ruby simply shot Weiss the look of "Sorry, I'm a goof.", which only seemed to provoke her superior more.

Weiss shot up from her chair, walked over to the confused operative, and yanked her immediately close for a kiss. Though Weiss was her superior, Ruby and her were in a relationship since their graduation from Beacon and the Salem crisis. "You can be a real pain in the ass," Weiss said through a chuckle.

Ruby immediately got a smug look on her face, slightly chuckling as she said to Weiss: "I thought that you only say that after some R&R." This statement got her a flick to the forehead by the embarrassed colonel.

Weiss wanted to proceed, but the sound of heeled boots coming closer to them suppressed her thoughts of doing so. She took her seat while Ruby sat down on a couch as Brigadier General Winter Schnee, Weiss's older sister and Superior, entered the room with Ashford, her advisor. The two stood up and saluted, before being dismissed by Winter saying: "At ease, you two."

"Hello sister, may I ask what brings you here?" Weiss inquired carefully.

Winter casually chuckled and said to her sister. "You can relax, Colonel, I'm here to discuss the mission assignment plan for when we enter Vale's airspace since I will be returning to Atlas in a few hours." She sounded irritated by the final comment.

Ruby could easily tell what bothered both Weiss and the Brigadier General. The sisters' father, SDC Chairman Jacques Schnee, was under investigation for possible involvement with sponsoring the person or group that is connected to the emergence of a new species of Grimm. Even though it is for the sake of the world, a great deal of stress has been put on Winter and Weiss someways.

"Ah yes, do we have an actual plan for the mission?" Weiss inquired.

The Brigadier general was handed a piece of paper by Ashford, she cleared her throat and said: "According to a report that was submitted by Beacon Academy Headmaster Oscar, there have been a series of attacks reported in numerous territories just south of the city." This intrigued both Weiss and Ruby, as these attacks could be connected to the new type of Grimm.

"Do you suspect that it's that new Grimm type?" Ruby spoke up, in which she received a stern glare from Ashford.

"The possibility is high, as the mutilated remains found each attack site had a black, sludge-based material residue left behind," The Brigadier General responded to the agent's inquiry.

"We still have no clue as to what this creature is capable of and a repeat of the fiasco in Vacuo is not an option," Weiss commented in a stern tone.

"Agreed, that's why I brought in someone to bolster the numbers for the operation." Winter explained as someone cleverly slipped into the room.

"Really? Wh-" Ruby's body shuttered and her face turned red when she felt someone's hands clutch her breasts. The individual's blonde hair poked up from behind as a voice said:

"Someone who is amazed by her cute little sister's _growth_ , all that milk you drank must have really helped after all."

"GAH! Yang!" Ruby exclaimed at the top of her lungs while the blonde huntress let out a hearty laugh.

Yang Xiao Long, Ruby's older half-sister and a talented huntress. After the end of the Salem Crisis, Yang used her talents as a huntress to pursue her mother, Raven, who disappeared following Salem's defeat and death. Well regarded as a top-tier huntress, Yang was a skilled freelancer and has been known to be very effective at fighting excessively powerful Grimm.

Ruby was fuming at her sister's act. "Yang, would you stop doing that?! It's irritating when you sneak up on me like that!" was all Ruby exclaimed as she guarded her chest against Yang.

"Aw, come on, Rubes, getting mad over a little joke that your big sis pulls on ya?" Yang casually said as she stretched her arms out for a hug. Ruby, though still mad, decided to run into Yang's arms, embracing her in a big hug.

"So, you'll be the one helping us, Yang?" Weiss inquired from the Huntress, who was still hugging her sister.

"Yep, I just finished a job in Atlas when Winter offered a job helping you guys out," Yang said casually as she released Ruby.

"Well, it's good to see you, Yang," Weiss responded with a relaxed smile. Before any conversations could occur, Winter cleared her throat…

"Anyway, I must depart back to Atlas. Weiss, you will have operational command until I return," Winter ordered to her sister.

"Yes, Ma'am," Weiss said in response.

Winter stood up and exited the room with Ashford, in which Yang shared a secondary hug with Ruby before almost walking out the door.

"What's the rush, Yang?" Weiss inquired.

"Well, when I arrived onboard I kinda parked Bumblebee in a place that some engineer was fuming about. Something about it being a place for deliveries?" Yang remarked.

Weiss simply let out a sigh as Yang quickly took off running to catch a tram to the hangar. As Ruby looked to the door, Weiss walked up next to her while she was distracted…

"It's good to see Yang again after so long," Ruby said.

"Yeah, she's still a pain in the ass to deal with, but now she seems to have gained a _more_ outgoing side to her," Weiss said.

"No kidding, I can't believe that she pulled a stunt like that. But…" Ruby said, sounding curious about something from that conversation.

"Oh? What has the _Great Ruby Rose_ curious?" Weiss said in a slightly teasing tone.

"Why did she run out so fast?" Ruby asked.

"I think I might have an idea as to why...for now, why don't you follow her and make sure she doesn't get into trouble?" Weiss casually said as the hand closest to Ruby landed on a place that caused Ruby's face to turn cherry red causing to stutter:

"Ye-yes ma'am…"

* * *

 **Edelweiss hangar 3**

 **10:09 am**

Winter stood at the ramp to her airship, with two guards standing at the ready. Ashford, her lieutenant, and close advisor, was standing in front of her with a copy of the mission parameters in his hand. Winter talked with the pilot, who ran back up the ramp as she turned to Ashford and said: "Ashford, I would like you to remain here and assist Weiss with the operations in Vale."

"Are you sure, milady? Guilford and Henley assure me that they can handle helping her," said Ashford.

"They may help her strategize, but your family has served ours for some time. I want you to assist Weiss emotionally when she cannot handle the stress," The Brigadier General explained.

"Understood, give my regards to Uncle should you visit your family home," Ashford said.

Winter responded to her subordinate with a "Certainly" before boarding her airship with her guards and departing. As Ashford walked back towards the door inside, he thought to himself about Weiss….

 _Brigadier General, your sister is greedy, in a sense. She treasures those close to her too well, and if one of those treasures was to be lost, I'm afraid she will crumble to dust._


	2. Chapter 2-3

**Disclaimer: 3.0 and it's respective artworks belong to Dishwasher1910**

 **Chapter 2: Fall**

 **Edelweiss briefing hall**

 **Vale Airspace.**

 **9:00 am, the Next day**

All major SRED operatives rallied in the large briefing hall of the Edelweiss as the massive cruiser began to enter the airspace of the Kingdom of Vale. Ruby was sitting amongst the crowd of armored soldiers while Weiss took her place at the center podium. She took a sip of water before saying to all operatives present: "Thank you all for gathering so quickly this morning, operations will begin at oh-nine-fifty, and we have a lot to discuss before you can head out into the field."

After saying her piece, the large monitor behind her flickered on to reveal images that would make anyone's skin crawl. Images of doors smashed in, blood-soaked walls and floors mixed with a form of black-like slime amongst pieces of human remains. "These images were taken from separate sites of confirmed Grimm attacks. Evidence and appearance of the wounds point to the new Grimm type that eluded our branch in Vacuo."

"So that new type is responsible?" One operative asked.

"Yes, that is why the goal of our operations in Vale is to try and assess its power should it ever cross our paths. However, you are not to engage unless you have no other choice," Weiss explained. "I will take any questions you have currently, but you are to report to Operations Director Ashford for your assignment locations." She departed from the podium while adjusting her collar, catching Ruby's attention as the operatives went over to a nearby board where Ashford was. Ruby walked over to the exit doors, where she found Weiss leaning against the wall. She let out a small chuckle, said: "That little signal I give you feels kind of stupid."

"Hey, you only do it if you actually have something to say that is off the Official records," Ruby said in response.

"You'll be going to the forests south of the city. It is the closest to the proximity where the attacks have been reported," Weiss explained. "Yang will be the closest to your location."

"So I would have to rely on her in case something goes wrong?" Ruby asked.

"If that new Grimm shows, run, just get away from it before it can do anything to you. There's no telling what little tricks that he put into it." Weiss ordered.

"Of course, good luck trying to hunt him," Ruby said before heading towards the trams.

Weiss was left alone, thinking to herself how they had gotten to where they are now. At the end of the Salem crisis, Salem's inner circle had broken apart, and each member had taken different paths. Hazel Rainart, Salem's top tier enforcer, was captured a few days after the defeat of Salem after he attempted to kill the girls involved with Salem's defeat, and is now serving a life sentence in the Tartarus Correctional Facility in Atlas. Tyrian Callows, Salem's personal assassin, was slain during the final confrontation. Finally, Cinder Fall, Salem's top agent, and apprentice was left incapacitated and no longer deemed a threat. The special Grimm that Salem gave her to use in the theft of the Maiden's power reacted to Salem's death violently before dying itself. It's death heavily damaged Cinder, leaving her sickly and in an unresponsive, vegetative state. She now resides at the Caldera Medical Institute under quarantine, looked after by her students, Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai. The only member of Salem's inner circle that evaded capture was Dr. Arthur Watts, who issued an ultimatum of retaliation for Salem's death before disappearing. Weiss always held him at the top of the list for individuals connected to the sudden emergence of the new Grimm variant. If they were able to catch him, they would have the answers they need.

* * *

 **Airship 41**

 **Call-sign** **: Dauntless 3-0**

 **Vale Forests.**

 **9:58 am**

Ruby sat in the hold of the airship alongside Yang, whose Bumblebee sat parked near the rear doors. The two sisters sat next to one another, in which the blonde huntress sat next to her sister as the airship roared across the sky. Yang, wearing a long brown jacket with her normal attire, noticed the nice jacket that Ruby was wearing with her normal attire. She turned to her sister and said: "Your jacket's kind of cute, how did you get it?"

"Oh, it's just something that I normally use for special jobs. Weiss helped me design it." Ruby explained.

"Well, you added your own flair to it. Anyway, I hope you stay safe out there." Yang said as the airship suddenly stopped.

"You too, I'll make sure to get a hold of you if something goes wrong," Ruby said.

"Xiao Long, we are at your drop zone." The pilot said over the radio.

"Roger that, see you when this over, Ruby," Yang said as she walked over to her Bumblebee and hopped on, backing out as Ruby waved to her sister. The airship lifted back into the air as Yang put on her sunglasses and drove off. The airship landed at another location, dropping off Ruby so she could carry out her assignment. But, both parties were unaware of the hidden observer who watched Ruby's arrival through a hidden placed camera….

* * *

The observer's head was well outlined by the monitors, the darkness of the room providing him unhindered sight of the screen as he watched multiple video feeds. He had a particular focus on one person in particular...

"Ruby Rose, It has been a long time since we faced off. But, I'll let my pet deal with you in my place as I need very good combat data."

* * *

Drawing her _Crescent Rose_ , Ruby walked around the forest for a while. She stumbled across a small group of Beowolves, which she easily dispatched.

"Well, that was too...easy," Ruby said as she heard a squishy sound coming up from behind her. Quickly spinning around she came face to face with a Grimm she never had seen before. The creature looked unlike any other kind of Grimm that she had encountered during her service in the SRED. It looked like a sentient mountain of mud that had two holes in place of any normal eyes, and a large, gaping maw that was wide as a car. The teeth in its mouth seemed to mirror the smile of a psychotic killer who was about to kill his mark. In a flash, Ruby quickly swung _Crescent Rose_ at it in hopes it would be easy to kill. But the gap created by her scythe's blade sealed up quickly as the Grimm began to let out what appeared to be a minor laugh. _What the hell,_ was all she thought to herself as she watched the Grimm begin to change shape. She swung at it again, using her speed to propel herself forward with incredible momentum. She managed to slice clean through horizontally on its side, though she felt a sharp pain on the side of her head...and she couldn't feel any signs of injury, just a soreness on the side of her scalp.

The beast laughed again and a large mass dropped from its right side at the spot where she landed her blow, landing on the ground in a quick *splash* before beginning to move. She set up for another attack, priming an elemental dust charge, but stopped when she saw the figure that the mud had begun to change into. Her eyes opened wide and rounded when she recognized who the figure was, from their slender figure, their hair design, and the long, curved blade that was connected to the pole that was clasped in its hands.

"It...just transformed...into me," was all that the huntress could get out of her mouth before being rushed by the muddy mimic in a similar speed to herself. Ruby kept dodging her copycat's _Crescent Rose_ , while her copycat dodged hers. When Ruby managed to put an arm's length of space from the muddy clone who was almost her twin, it twisted its head like a wild owl with a maniacal grin across its face as the creature's mouth began to slowly move…

"M...o…r...e…..Y...o...u…..m...o...r...e" came out of its mouth in broken pieces. This sent horrific chills down Ruby's spine at almost the speed of her semblance. This Grimm was now speaking verbally to her, which was about enough of it that she could handle. She jumped back, throwing her coat in the path of her counterpart, in which the clone sliced it in half, and dashed away from the scene before the Grimm could catch her. As she ran for safety, she placed her hand to her ear so Weiss could be warned…

" _Ruby, do you have any information on the new creature?_ " Weiss inquired over the comms.

"Weiss, this thing is too dangerous, we need to regroup and-" Ruby said before being rendered silent by the pain that shot up through her body.

GAWP...The large mountain of mud managed to hold her back mid flight by clamping its enormous jaws onto the huntress' legs, her aura broke almost instantly. Ruby's hair flew ahead of her while her upper body wanted to obey gravity and drop straight to the earth below. But, the weight and pain forced her afloat. The Grimm, which was standing completely still as a statue while Ruby evaded her clone's strikes, was now in her presence. In Ruby's mind, time itself had just stopped flowing around her. It was all concentrated onto this terrible moment, where Ruby stared in complete horror at the blood-stained, pearly whites of the Grimm as they pressed downward onto Ruby's legs. Sections of bloodied meat began to split while the sound of bones crunching echoed in their presence. Ruby knew that they were no longer than hers, and the pain that was once small had elevated. Words wanted to explode from her mouth, but they couldn't escape. All Ruby could do was watch the creature munch and devour her limbs as the floodgates of her tears opened wide. Large streams of her tears began to race down the sides of her face like a fast moving waterfall, as she let out a loud, painful scream:

"ARGHH...GHHHHRGH...ARGHH!"

The high volume of her scream that far off in the distance, Yang was in the middle of slaying her final Grimm opponent and she heard it, immediately recognizing it. "Ruby" was a worried word that came from her mouth, as Yang hopped aboard her Bumblebee and raced to her sister's location.

Meanwhile, Ruby screamed like bloody murder as she was about to be locked onto her scroll. But, at this moment, the young huntress was doing everything in her power to try and break free from her captivity. Every fiber of her being kicked into overdrive, as she continuously punched the large teeth holding her to the point her hands began to hurt. Her tears began to mix with blood that sprayed from the beast's large maw as the teeth began to shift as it ground the remains of Ruby's legs into a mushy red pulp before swallowing and proceeding to continue. With no other option, Ruby mustered what little strength she had left for one final Herculean effort; in which she pressed against the teeth with all her might and managed to separate herself from the beast's mouth, falling to the rocky ground below with a loud *THUD*

Ruby, who could run as fast as lightning and had carried out so many missions for the SRED, was at her limit. Her arms were covered in scratches from the rocks, and her physical pain that was reverberating throughout her entire body and left her on the verge of losing consciousness. In a final act, the huntress took one look towards her lower half. Her legs were reduced to her upper thighs, and blood seeped out from the open stumps and past dangling chunks of meat that the Grimm didn't eat. The massive amount of blood below her was devastatingly high, reminding her of the old cape that she wore during her time at beacon.

"RUBY! HANG ON, YANG IS COMING...*sniff*...JUST HANG IN THERE!" Weiss screamed over the comms.

 _Weiss_ …Ruby's thoughts flooded with images of her and the time that they spent together from their time at Beacon to joining the SRED. They were a notorious duo together, having good times and bad together. She was going to miss being with her, hearing her voice, and playing the occasional joke on Weiss for her height. But, all that she would miss the most out of her memories was seeing the passion and dedication that Weiss put to her position as the Colonel.

Yang, her fiery dragon of a sister. Ruby longed for the warmth of her sister's embrace in this bitter cold. She had only seen her sister after several years, and now she worried about who was going to keep Yang in check when she was gone? Who would look after their father? Who would cook, clean, and handle all the chore work? What about all of the friends that she was leaving behind?

Tears began to flood down her face once more, no longer about the pain she felt, but regret. Regret for leaving so much unfinished, and for leaving all of her friends and loved ones behind and so suddenly. With one final effort, she struggled to reach for her comms, but her strength quickly gave out as she could let out one final word:

"Weiss…" As she began to drift into unconsciousness, the large Grimm had begun to lower its massive mouth towards the vulnerable girl to finish its meal. But, as it opened, a large fireball came flying out of the trees as the roar of an engine was heard. The massive Grimm retreated back, in which Bumblebee was parked in between both it and the wounded Ruby, and its rider turned to see her sister lying on the ground in her own blood. In that moment, Yang shakingly clenched her fists as tears began to flow down her face.

She hopped off Bumblebee, her shaking growing more violent as her hair and eyes began to glow brighter and brighter with each passing second, trudging across the blood-stained ground as she marched forward towards the Grimm as her robotic arm shifted to its combat mode. In that singular moment, Yang began to speak as the Grimm moved closer to her, letting out a violent war cry...

" _AAAAAAAGH!_ " Yang screamed at the top of her lungs, revealing her bright red eyes.

 **Chapter 3: Rage of the Dragon**

 **Vale Forests**

 **10:08 am**

The large Grimm attempted to rush Yang, but the blonde-haired huntress continuously bombarded the creature with heavy attacks. It attempted to attack her with clones of Ruby, only for that move to further anger her. Seeing no other option, the Grimm suddenly retreated to the Huntress' surprise. She would have pursued if but she had to wait as her wounded sister placed a higher priority than her own new bloodlust. Yang turned her attention to Ruby, sprinting to her sister's side where she was horrified to see the loss of her legs.

The first thing that came to Yang's mind was to see if Ruby still had some semblance of consciousness, so she said through her emotion-ridden voice, "Ruby, are you alright? Can you hear me?" continuing for a minute before Ruby started to slightly move and weakly say to her frightened sister:

"Yang?"

"Oh gods, just hang on, I need to stop your wounds from bleeding." The blond-haired huntress said, moving to stop the bleeding. Yang immediately took her coat and proceeded to wrap it around the bleeding stumps of her legs, but knew she needed something to cut off blood flow. Looking around for anything that she could use, Yang spotted the halves of Ruby's destroyed coat and ran over, grabbing the two halves, and fashioning two tourniquets to cut off blood flow to the open wounds. Scooping her weakened and pale sister into her arms, The blonde huntress quickly mounted Bumblebee, in which she spoke to the holographic console; "Bumblebee, activate voice command."

" _Voice command system activated, please set course…"_ sounded from Bumblebee. Yang, clearing her throat, immediately said, "Edelweiss, Hangar, max speed." Clutching Ruby tight, Bumblebee's engine roared as it sped away from the scene. Maneuvering around trees and rocks, while Yang fought off Grimm drawn to Ruby's blood. While Bumblebee sped to safety, Yang's communicator blared with the voice of one of the Edelweiss comms officers; " _Yang Xiao Long, this is Edelweiss control, are you able to reach Agent Rose? We are having difficulty reaching her._ "

"Edelweiss, I have Ruby and I need a medical team for her when I get there," Yang explained as the massive ship came into view. Bumblebee shifted to flight mode and took off towards one of the ship's main hangars. Upon stopping, Yang immediately hopped off Bumblebee, still holding onto the injured Ruby. Rushing over to the door, she grew slightly frustrated at the door's slow open speed and even more concerned due to Ruby's deteriorating condition. When the door finally opened, she came face to face with a horrified Weiss and her officers, as well as a medical team.

"Please *sniff* you have to something... _you have to save Ruby_!" she exclaimed at the top of her lungs. One of the medical officers came over and took Ruby from Yang, resting the girl on the gurney that they brought with her before examining her. The senior officer of the medical team turned to his subordinate and inquired:

"What's her status?"

"She's lost a lot of blood, we need to get her to the operating theater immediately." The subordinate explained to her superior.

"Alright, get one of the trams to take us to the medical deck right away, no stops." The officer ordered as his subordinates tended to Ruby on the go.

The medical team rushed away with the injured Ruby, leaving Yang alone with Weiss and her subordinates while the former was still in a state of shock. Guilford, noticing the fact that both Weiss and Yang had been affected by this, decided to break the silence by asking the blonde huntress, "Yang, what happened out there?"

Yang, still shedding some tears over the incident, quickly wiped her face and cleared her throat "It was the new Grimm type. It took her legs."

Henley and Weiss let out a *gasp* while Guilford looked completely shell-shocked. Guilford wanted to see what information Yang had gained on it, but the moment they were in right now wasn't really appropriate to do so. Henley decided to speak up and said, "That should not have been possible, our intel clearly stated that the chances of the Grimm being there were low."

"This is the equivalent of a war, Henley. Intel can prove to be questionable when it needs to." Guilford responded in a rather stern tone. Henley wanted to argue, but she was interrupted by Weiss, who blocked Henley with her arm and spoke up with:

"The Intel did say that the new Grimm's chances of appearing were low, but the area Ruby had been investigating was within close proximity to the boundaries of the area where the new breed had been attacking."

Yang looked at her former teammate with shock, while Guilford let out a surprised, "What?" at what his superior had just said:

"I warned her to find you, Yang, if she ever ran into the Grimm and it tried to attack, I just had no-" was the Colonel could say while Yang walked up to her and violently punched the wall with a loud *SLAM!*, her robotic fist landing just inches away from Weiss' head. Weiss was trembling from the shock of the action, but mostly from Yang, whose eyes were bright red as she clenched her teeth.

"Xiao Long, what do you think you are doing?!" Guilford exclaimed as he tried to pull Yang back. Yang shrugged the man off, proclaiming to Weiss:

"Don't give me that crap that you didn't know this would happen, you placed my sister in danger, Weiss. All you can say about that is "I didn't know?" Weiss's knees finally gave out from under her and she began to fall to the floor, only to be caught by her collar by Yang, in which Henley and Guilford decided to try and pry the furious Yang off her. "If you want to stay in better condition, Colonel, then I would stay away from Ruby while I stay on this ship." was the final thought Yang said in her rage. She angrily stormed off with Guilford trailing her, in which a terrified Weiss fell to the floor. Tears began to trickle down the Colonel's face as her breathing became slightly rapid, in which Henley helped her to her feet.

Weiss clutched to Henley, showing that she was terrified of Yang during that moment. "Hey, you have to be strong right now. Even though Yang is upset, Ruby is still one of ours and you have a responsibility to uphold." was all that Henley could say as she worked to try and calm down her superior.

"Am I a good person?" Weiss inquired from her subordinate, surprising the latter. She dried her tears, continuing with, "I knew where Ruby was, I could've warned Yang about the danger and had her go along with Ruby as the backup, but I didn't. And now Ruby is…" was all Weiss could say before she was on the verge of breaking down again. Henley pulled Weiss close, in which she needed to say something, which came out in the form of:

"Listen, Colonel, war is hell, and there are hundreds of people who experience this same crisis as you. Now, get your head in the game, Ruby needs both you and Yang's help to overcome this if she pulls through. Yang's temper may be running hot right now, but she'll need time before you two are on the equal ground again." He finished with, "Now get your head straight and find a way to help Ruby in your own way, I'll head to the Medical deck to check on Miss Rose and bring Ashford up to speed. Maybe I'll even get the info on the new Grimm type from Xiao Long."

Weiss acknowledged her subordinate, then proceeded to the trams to the administrative deck. Henley decided to catch a tram to the medical deck in which she crossed paths with Ashford, who was already on board the tram. Upon noticing how stressed Henley was, the officer decided to ask, "First Officer Henley, is something the matter?"

"Lieutenant Commander Ashford, I was actually looking to talk to you," Henley said as the tram took off.


	3. Chapter 4-5

**Disclaimer: I don't own the 3.0 verse, all respective credit goes to Dishwasher1910**

 **Chapter 4: The Shattered Ones**

 **Edelweiss Medical Deck**

 **Outside operating theater 2**

 **10:32 am**

Yang sat in one of the chairs outside the operating theater, looking at a photograph on her scroll. It was of Team RWBY, as they all celebrated their graduation from Beacon Academy, which the blonde huntress remembered vividly. That was also the day Ruby announced that she was going to be joining the SRED alongside Weiss.

The sign of SURGERY IN PROGRESS was the brightest light source present in the hall. Tears began to reform on her face the longer her eyes were locked on the photo as the memory of the happy day of their graduation formed in her mind….

"Alright guys, let's show the world the skill of Team RWBY!" was the cheerful sentence that came out of Ruby's mouth at the time. Just thinking of those words was enough to make Yang want to cry, in which she was unaware that Henley had walked up to her with two cups of tea in her hands.

"Hey, Xiao Long," Henley said as she offered the second cup to the exhausted blonde huntress. Yang took the other cup, responding with a nod.

"So, did Weiss decide to send you to get info out of me?" was the first thing Yang said to the officer as she sat down and took a sip of her tea.

"Nah, that can wait until your mood is in much better skies," Henley responded, striking up the conversation. "And I am not here to give you a lecture on how you behaved after Ruby was rushed here."

"Yeah, that Guilford fellow did that as I boarded the Tram," Yang responded with a slight chuckle.

Henley let out a slight laugh, as she found Guilford's by-the-book military regimen as both humorous and silly. Shifting back to the seriousness of the moment, Henley said to Yang as she sipped her tea, "I'm not going to go off on you, since I would have done the exact same thing you did if it were my sister in Ruby's place..." which the last part of her sentence caught the attention of Yang.

"You never mentioned that you had a sister when we first met," Yang pointed out, sounding surprised by this discovery.

Henley took a large sip of her tea before responding with, "Yep, she always calls me whenever she's not in her classes and when I am on my break. She's a student at Beacon."

Before Yang could respond to Henley's explanation, the light over the operating theater door shut off. The two watched as a group of doctors moved a treated Ruby, who was blacked out unconscious, on a gurney towards one of the rooms down the hall. The main surgeon came over to the two, in which Henley inquired, "How is she, doctor?"

"She suffered 49% blood loss, enough to almost send her into hemorrhagic shock. We've managed to seal her wounds and cap them, but if she pulls through, I can't guarantee that she'll be completely okay after the ordeal," was all the surgeon could say.

Upon hearing that, Yang let out a small gasp at the news. Her sister's life will be changed forever by this. The surgeon walked them to Ruby's room, where the medical staff just finished setting her up. A nurse brought in a wheelchair for her to use when she awakens again. Yang carefully walked over to her sister's bedside, in which Henley felt the need to leave the blonde huntress alone for now, but said to her, "I'll leave you alone with her for now, but I'll be back later to talk to you about the Grimm that did this."

As Henley turned to leave, Yang spoke up with, "When I know my sister can recover from this, I'm going to find that beast, and it is going to pay." She raised her head to reveal that her eyes were red once more.

* * *

 **Edelweiss Administrative Deck**

 **Office of Colonel Weiss Schnee**

 **10:40 am**

Ashford arrived outside Weiss's office on the administrative deck, thinking over the briefing that he received from Henley. "Agent Rose lost her legs?" was the first thing he had said before receiving the full details from Henley. After learning of how Weiss was handling the situation, his first instinct was to evaluate situation as it was his responsibility to look after the colonel's emotional state by orders of Winter. The door opened, in which he carefully walked in and found her sitting on the corner couch that she had in the room. Her gloved hands were clasped together with her head hanging low.

"Colonel, I heard about the situation with Agent Ro- I mean, Ruby," was the first thing that had come out of the reserved Lieutenant commander's mouth.

"Yes, I was recently notified that they released her from surgery," Weiss responded, emotion mixed with relief in her voice. "At least that's something," she added to her statement, clutching her hands together tightly. While she stared towards the ground, still-ridden with both guilt and worry for Ruby, Ashford walked over to her, carefully removing the Colonel's hat and cradling her head.

"I know that you are worried. I know that you're scared, but right now, Ruby needs your help. I know that she'll still want to be a part of the SRED, so we need to find a way to make that happen," Ashford said, then he released Weiss and stood up.

The colonel stood up, wiping away her tears, and placed her hat back onto her head. Clearing her throat, Weiss responded with, "You're right, I can't be sitting around when she needs my help. Helping her is what I can do now, since it is my responsibility as one of her former teammates."

"Exactly," said Ashford. He continued with, "On a serious note, I feel that we should notify Winter about the situation."

"Agreed, and I would like you notify a few others if you don't mind," Weiss said, raising confusion from Ashford.

She immediately sat down at her desk, activating the holographic display with the logo of the SRED. When the keyboard materialized, Weiss immediately started typing into the search bar: - _Cybernetic augmentation development-._

* * *

 **Medical Room 103**

 **Edelweiss Medical deck**

 **10:45 am**

Five minutes had passed since Henley had rejoined Yang after sorting out her own affairs. The two were seated on the small couch that was in line with the wall opposite of the gurney. They were in talks about the Grimm that had hurt Ruby. Henley was thinking over the details that had been provided by Yang, commenting, "So, the Grimm could create mirror replicas of its prey."

"Yeah, the ones who attacked me must have come after the damn thing devoured Ruby's legs," Yang commented.

"So, It must need to consume biomass in order to produce the clones," Henley said to the blonde huntress, which Yang nodded in agreement. "This is going to be challenging, considering its body is not technically solid, and its speed-" the officer interrupted her own statement as the sound of sheets moving startled the both of them.

Yang stood up to see Ruby's right hand twitching and moving, clutching the sheet of the bed while her face began to shift as well. Her mouth started to twitch on the left side, her eyes began to move rapidly, as the machine that monitored Ruby's heart rate and neurological activity began to beep louder and louder…

"What's wrong, Yang?" Henley inquired before beginning to catch onto the situation. The blonde huntress was focused on Ruby, whose eye movement began increase and her breathing began to get much faster.

"She's having a nightmare," was the first thing that had come to Yang's mind, before her entire train of thought was derailed by the moment of Ruby awakening with a horrified scream….

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Pain of New Beginnings**

 **Edelweiss Medical Deck**

 **Medical Room 103**

 **10:47 am**

A doctor exploded into the room, alarmed by the loud volume of Ruby's scream. The first thing that he saw was a crying Ruby clutching onto the blonde huntress tightly, with the latter gently stroking her head and holding her close, shushing her and saying things like, " It's alright Ruby, I'm right here," and, "Just breathe, you're alright."

The doctor turned to Henley, who was still in shock by Ruby's sudden awakening. Still in surprise by the sight, he said, "This shouldn't be possible".

"What do you mean?" The First Officer asked the man.

"She's supposed to be under heavy sedation right now," the doctor pointed out. "How did she even awake?" he added with confusion laden in his voice.

"She had a serious nightmare, her brain must have forced her awakening." Henley said in response.

Before the doctor could speak, Ashford knocked on the door in which he was surprised by Ruby's awakening. He stepped into the room, in which he cleared his throat and inquired, "What's going on here?"

"Agent Rose suffered a bad nightmare, sir. It caused a spike in her brain activity, forcing an early awakening." Henley explained, to which the doctor interjected with…

"This early of an awakening is too soon, she'll have to go back under sedation because the complications that might arise because she awoke too early when she had only got out of surgery moments ago, may be damaging."

Henley looked to the doctor, slightly irritated by his rude interjection, but looked to Ruby and Yang. She was still clutching onto her older sister, who worked to try and calm her down, successfully getting Ruby's breathing to relax itself.

"I don't think she'll like that." Henley commented.

Yang had managed to actually hear her, inquiring with a "Won't like what?"

"Miss Xiao long, we need to put your sister back under sedation. Waking so soon after having such heavy injuries treated can lead to serious complications." The doctor explained.

"No...No...No." Ruby muttered to herself, which she was consoled further by Yang.

Ashford caught onto Ruby's behavior in which he walked to the edge of the bed, resting his hand on the railing and inquired, "You had a bad dream about the creature, didn't you?"

Ruby responded with a nod as tears returned to her eyes, which Yang pulled her close. Ashford, appearing to be satisfied with the answer, let go of the railing and said to the doctor, "She'll go back under sedation, but you are to handle it after I have had a word with Miss Xiao Long."

The Doctor acknowledged his orders, in which the Lieutenant Commander gestured for Yang to follow him. The huntress left her sister in Henley's care, proceeding to follow Ashford out into the hall. The lieutenant commander stopped in his tracks, turning to face Yang and saying "Firstly, I know about your little outburst against Colonel Schnee."

Yang leaned against the wall, responding to Ashford with a "Yeah, I'm willing to admit that I lost my cool on Weiss." The Lieutenant Commander picked up on Yang's body language, noticing something off….

"How is Weiss, by the way?" Yang inquired from the man.

"She's fine, She's relaxed a little more after your outburst. As to what she's doing, is what I wished to discuss with you before anything could go a little further." Ashford explained.

Yang looked at the man with a puzzled look on her face, in which Ashford continued with "The colonel is looking into seeing about having Ruby receive new legs."

The huntress's face lit up in surprise at the news that had just been spoken. Deciding to speak up, Yang said "She's doing what now?"

"Weiss is looking into some cybernetics programs, looking to see if one is able and willing to assist with getting Ruby a set of robotic legs to give her back her mobility." He continued with "She wanted me to come down here to see about discussing the matter with you, and...get a status update on Ruby."

The blonde-haired huntress seemed to relax as she set out a sigh of relief, but to what, Ashford seemed unsure of. One thing that appeared to be certain, is that Yang looked slightly guilty about something that took over her central focus. She spoke up with "You know, I actually didn't mean to blow up on Weiss like that."

"I figured, your sister's life was on the line, so I could understand if you lost it." Ashford said as Yang stood up straight and turned towards the door. Before walking back into the room, Yang said only one thing to Ashford…

"Tell Weiss to inform me if she makes any breakthroughs, and, that she can visit ruby when she is able to."

Ashford took the message and departed for the tram station, in which Yang walked over to Ruby's bedside as the doctor readied to re-apply a fresh dose of sedative to put Ruby back to sleep. The scared girl gently grabbed her sister's hand, saying to her "I'm scared to go back to sleep."

The blonde huntress took her sister's hand, clasping it in between her mechanical hand and her normal one, taking a breath before saying, "I'm going to be by your side this whole time, Ruby, and you'll know that I'll be here because you'll feel the warmth of my hand in yours." Yang said, pulling her close and resting her forehead against her sister's, and saying one thing to her…

"I love you, sis."

Ruby, slightly tearing up once again, responded to her sister with, "I love you too." Yang helped Ruby relax back into her bed, in which the doctor began to apply the sedative. Yang held Ruby's left hand gently as the doctor exited the room quietly as Ruby began to return to sleep.

* * *

 **Beacon Academy Headmaster's Office.**

 **Beacon Tower, Vale.**

 **10:50 am**

"I see, so Ruby has been treated then?" A young man with long dark hair and a set of glasses said to the holographic image of Ashford before taking a sip of coffee.

"Yes, The colonel asked me to notify a select few individuals about this incident. I've already notified Chieftain Belladonna about it, and she'll be able to visit after the meetings that she's coming to Vale for are finished. I would've notified you sooner, Headmaster, but I was preoccupied with another task," Ashford explained to the young man.

"That's understandable, Lieutenant Commander. Managing things in positions like ours can sometimes be chaotic." The young man said.

"Agreed, did you receive the intel packet alright?" The Lieutenant Commander inquired.

"Yes. All teachers have been updated with the information, and we have doubled security measures for when students participate in any field work." The headmaster explained.

"Roger that. Now, I'll need to get in touch with a Jaune Arc." Ashford said,

Oscar simply raised his hand and said "No need, Ashford, I can handle that."

"Really?" Ashford said in surprise.

"Yes, I'll get in touch with him and bring him along when the students are in their lunch break." Oscar explained.

"Okay, I'll make sure transportation for you two is arranged and notify you of the details." Ashford said before hanging up.

Oscar turned to his desk, grabbed his scroll and dialed Jaune's scroll number up and placed it to his ear…

"Jaune, something has happened to Ruby."


	4. Chapter 6-7

**Disclaimer: I do not own the RWBY 3.0 Universe. All respective artwork for the AU belongs to artist Dishwasher1910. These are the final chapters.**

 _ **Author's**_ ** _Recommendation_ : When you are reading Chapter 7, have RWBY OST: "All Our Days" playing in the background to achieve the desired effect.**

 **Chapter 6: Old Friends and Breakthroughs**

 **Edelweiss Medical Deck Mess Hall**

 **7:00 am**

 **The Next Morning**

A weary, exhausted Yang sat at a table in the mess hall with her equally fatigued sister as well. Yang was fatigued due to having fallen asleep in an uncomfortable position, while Ruby was fatigued from a cocktail of leftover sedative and difficulty sleeping through her nightmares. Yang ate a meal of sausage and eggs in front of her, while Ruby nibbled some cookies that sat in front of her. In that moment, a nurse that had just gotten her breakfast decided to join the two by asking "Do you mind if I sit with you two?"

"Hmmm? Oh, sure go ahead." Yang said, gesturing for the nurse to sit.

"You two look like you had a rough night." The nurse said as she sat down onto the seat, which garnered a look of "You think?" from both Yang and Ruby.

"So, I just wanted to check in and see how you're doing." The nurse said before taking a bite of her omelet.

"Well, I'm not used to sleeping in a chair. Considering that my back still aches for sleeping so long." Yang explained, resting her hand on her lower back.

"Well, I can see about making some arrangements with the Colonel to have something a little more comfortable for you to sit in delivered to the room." The nurse offered.

Yang responded with a "thanks" as she munched down a sausage. Ruby munched down a few cookies, then gulped down some milk to finish off her meal. She tapped Yang's shoulder to let her know that she was done.

"You good?" Yang inquired from her sister, who nodded "Yes". Yang placed her sister's dishes on her tray and took it over to the wash station in order to have them taken care of. The nurse was curious, in which she decided to ask Ruby "Yang's being really nice to you huh?"

Ruby turned to the nurse and said "My arms are still a bit sensitive from all the wounds they had, so I can't hold onto heavy things for too long."

"Oh, I see" She responded as Yang got back to the table, in which the Nurse shifted her conversation focus to another matter by saying "By the way, there was actually another reason that I wanted to talk with you two."

Upon hearing the nurse say that, Yang went on the defensive and asked "What's up?"

" I wanted to inform you that Headmaster Oscar and Jaune Arc would be stopping by sometime around 11 to visit you, Agent Rose. Your colleague, Chieftain Blake Belladonna, will be stopping by sometime later." was the Nurse's explanation.

Both Ruby and Yang were surprised, they hadn't heard from their old friends in such a long time. Oscar, since fusing with Ozpin, became the headmaster of Beacon Academy while Jaune took up a teaching position there. Blake, due to her family's status, became the new Chieftain of Menagerie and the new High Leader of the White Fang. Though they remain slight friends, Blake and Weiss have been at odds over their ideals in regards to certain matters. Namely, the handling of the Liberation Front, a faction that emerged from the remains of Adam Taurus' former splinter cell.

"So they'll be stopping by?" Ruby said.

"Yeah, Weiss probably had Ashford tee them off about what happened." Yang said.

After concluding their conversation, Yang walked the wheelchair bound Ruby back to her room.

As they passed through the halls, they saw Weiss sitting in the chairs near her room, in which she stood to up to face her comrades. Yang noticed the effects how the Colonel had devoted her time to finding the right cybernetics to help Ruby. There were dark bags under her eyes, and her eyes themselves had begun to show signs of redness. She looked exhausted, like she has lost a great deal of sleep. She sheepishly walked towards them and said "Hey, you two."

"Hey, Weiss." Ruby said.

"Do you mind if I can talk to Yang for a bit?" Weiss inquired from the wheelchair-bound girl.

"Sure, Weiss, just let put Ruby in the room real quick." Yang interjected, in which they went into the room and only Yang came back out. She stopped a few feet from her friend, in which she asked "What did you want to talk about?"

"I...I did it...I managed to find it." Weiss said, sounding almost hysterical.

"Whoa, relax. What did you find?" Yang asked the slightly hysteric Colonel.

"There's a cybertech developer in Atlas that has a branch here in Vale, they have a cybernetics program that can give Ruby some legs." Weiss said.

The blonde-haired huntress let out a beaming smile upon hearing the Colonel's words. She had managed to succeed in finding a way for Ruby to regain her mobility again. In that moment, Weiss nearly toppled over, the exhaustion that she had been feeling had reached a serious point. Yang stepped forward and caught the Colonel, asking "When was the last time that you slept?"

"Sorry, I feel that we should tell Ruby the good news together." Weiss said.

"You look like you need sleep more than conveying a message." Yang explained through a slightly concerned voice.

"You kidding? They can stop by at the start of Next week." Weiss exclaimed as Yang's scroll started to *beep*.

Pulling out her scroll and looking at it, the blonde-haired huntress looked amused by the message but also annoyed at the timing she received it in.

"What's the matter?" Weiss inquired.

"It's just about my bike." Yang said in response. The two went into the room, in which Yang gestured Weiss ahead, as the girl felt that the one who made the breakthrough should be the one to share the news. Weiss nervously stepped towards Ruby, anxious about how to approach her after all that has happened. Ruby looked to Weiss, in which Weiss took notice of the area where Ruby's legs once were. Her long, slender legs were now replaced with dark, metal caps that covered her stumps.

Taking a breath as well as a slight gulp, Weiss said to the wheelchair bound girl "Hey, Ruby."

"Hello, Weiss." Ruby responded to her superior and lover.

"I...wanted to give you some good news. I found some people that are willing to help with setting you up with a set of robotic legs. You'll walk again Ruby." Weiss said with a jubilous voice.

Ruby, upon hearing those words, started to cry a bit as she stared downward as tears started to form on her eyes. Weiss and Yang were both dumbfounded by her reaction, misinterpreting her tears for sadness. Weiss asked "Is something wrong?"

"No, it's...I'm just...so happy." Ruby said through her breaking voice, raising her head to shoot the two a sweet smile. Weiss broke down in relief, in which she and Ruby embraced as Yang joined in. But, as the trio held each other, the fatigued Weiss quietly fell asleep on the two from exhaustion. Letting out a slight chuckle, Yang picked up the sleeping Schnee and laid her down on the couch.

As she helped her sister back into bed, Yang said " She told me that they would be by sometime at the end of the week to perform the operation to outfit you with the legs."

"Oh, I see." Ruby responded.

"Anyway, I'll be staying on the Edelweiss to help you recover once you get your new legs. Plus, I have to go check on my bike." Yang said, kissing her sister on her forehead.

The blonde huntress exited the room, leaving Ruby alone to rest alongside the sleeping Colonel. Ruby tried to shut her eyes in order to get a small nap in before her old friends arrived for their visit today. She had started to fall asleep, when she heard a loud *THUD* in which she carefully sat up to hear Weiss exclaim "OWW!".

Letting out a small snicker, Ruby said "Weiss, you clearly forgot what your bed felt like because you were sleeping on a couch."

"Shut up." Weiss groggily said before staggering to her feet, and realising something. She had not heard Ruby's laughter since the incident occurred. Hearing Ruby's little snicker granted the Colonel a sense of comfort towards the fact that despite her pain, Ruby was slowly making her way towards returning to her normalcy. In this moment, there was nothing that could frighten her, nothing that could harm her, only her happiness at seeing Weiss make a goof of herself.

Picking up on Weiss' silence, Ruby decided to ask "Weiss, is something the matter?"

"Nothing, it's just...I have heard your laugh in a while." The colonel responded, giving Ruby a relieved smile.

 **Unknown Location**

 **10:00 am**

Watts was sitting in his chair looking over the recordings of his creation's work in the field. He was looking at videos of the creature attack random targets such as Civilians, Huntsmen, and even other Grimm. He is taking notes on the creature, noting ways to try and improve its development. Before another video could play, the monitor lit up with the image of the mysterious benefactor, in which the doctor felt compelled to answer.

" _Arthur_ , _we need to talk._ " The voice on the other end said.

"If it's about the Schnee fiasco, I am preoccupied by different matters." Watts said

" _It's not about that. We would like you to relocate to the lab in Mistral_." The voice explained, raising an eyebrow from the Doctor.

"Why would I do that? I'm still performing research on the prototypes here." The doctor argued in his defense.

" _Your activities in Vale have sparked unwanted attention. The SRED and Vale huntsmen are raising security measures and expanding their search for you, and the SRED is amplifying their efforts since you wounded their top agent._ " The voice explained, sounding irritated with the man.

The doctor expressed an annoyed *groan* at the persistence of the SRED and the stubbornness that The voice had with his plans. They continued with " _I know that you harbor a grudge towards those girls for their killing of Salem, but we need your focus on creating a strong weapon rather than a petty squabble."_

"Oh, you will never understand." Watts said with anger laid into his voice.

* * *

 **Edelweiss Hangar**

 **10:59 am**

An SRED airship landed in the hangar where Ashford and a couple of guards stood at the ready. The exit ramp lowered, in which a young man with long dark hair in a dark green vest, combined with a white shirt and light green scarf, dark dress pants and shoes and a pair of small glasses affixed upon his nose walked down with a cane his hand. He was accompanied by a young, blonde-haired man with his hair tied in a small ponytail, donning formal attire consisting of a modified black jacket, a white vest with a black dress shirt with a red tie underneath, white dress pants, and black dress shoes with Gold detail. The two walked up to Ashford as he cleared his throat and said "Welcome to the Edelweiss, Headmaster Pine and Mr. Arc."

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ashford." Oscar said.

"Understood, now, if you will follow me to the tram station, we'll be on our way." Ashford said, leading the two towards the doors.

"How's Ruby been?" Jaune inquired about his friend as they proceeded towards the trams.

"She's been alright. Though, she has been suffering from the occasional nightmare about the ordeal." The lieutenant commander explained.

"That's understandable, considering all that has occurred. I just hope she can endure." Jaune said, sounding deeply concerned and catching the attention of both Oscar and Ashford.

The group boarded a tram and rode it all the way to the medical deck, in which they crossed paths with Weiss, who greeted them formally. "Hello, Oscar, Jaune."

The Blonde-haired boy walked up and hugged the Colonel, much to Ashford's displeasure. Weiss hugged him back, saying "Thanks for that."

"You're welcome, how has Ruby been?" Jaune asked the Colonel, unaware of who was being pushed in a wheelchair approaching them.

"What's up, Jaune?" Ruby said in a relaxed tone.

Both the headmaster and teacher laid their eyes on the wheelchair-bound Ruby, with Yang standing behind her. Both men were caught off guard by Ruby's approach to them, while comprehending her appearance. Jaune walked up to Ruby and hugged his friend tightly, in which he said, "It's good to see you Ruby."

"Likewise, Jaune, I haven't seen you in forever." Ruby said as she hugged him back, knowing that he was concerned for her.

"I can't believe that you went through that ordeal." Jaune said, referring to her lost legs, as Oscar walked up to the duo.

"I'm glad to see that you're recovering, Ruby." Oscar said, sounding concerned for her while expressing relief to see that she was recovering. He turned to Yang and added, "And how are you holding up, Yang?"

"* _sigh_ * I'm hanging in there, Oscar, just a little fatigued from sleeping on a chair for so long." The Huntress responded.

Oscar let out a slight chuckle, then inquired about a place where they can talk. After being taken to an elegantly designed visitor area, the group sat and chatted amongst themselves. Curious, Weiss decided to inquire from Oscar "How much security measures are being taken to avoid incidents with the new Grimm variant?"

The headmaster responded with, " Student's scrolls are being equipped with special programs to notify either their teammates or teachers of any hostile Grimm that match the description of the variant, and with the upcoming Shadow operations, I was considering having some huntsmen support for the fieldwork that the students do."

"I can see about arranging some teams to help out with that. Just send me the date for when the event starts." Weiss said.

"I appreciate it, Weiss." Oscar said.

"I really want it to go well, it's going to be Izzie's first time in the field." Jaune said openly.

Ruby and Yang let out a quick "oh" as sense of Nostalgia came over them, Izetta Arc was the latest addition to the Arc Family at the end of the Salem conflict. Jaune took her in after he found the poor girl on her own since she lost her folks to the Grimm. Ruby decided to inquire about the young Arc by asking "How has Izetta been?"

The blonde boy said "Izzie's been doing good. I've been getting on her about keeping her grades up."

Oscar and Ruby let out a chuckle as the young Headmaster said "As you should, She has been wanting to learn how to be a great huntress like her foster brother."

"Yeah. Anyway, she stills calls you "Big sister Ruby." Jaune added.

"Well, tell her hello for me." Ruby said.

They conversed for awhile until Oscar and Jaune had to leave. Yang walked Ruby back to her room with Weiss in tow. After walking back to the room, Yang picked Ruby out of her chair, placing her back on the bed, in which the girls decided to chat amongst themselves. Yang started the conversation with "I really hope nothing bad happens to Izzie."

Weiss followed with "Izetta is a tough girl, she had to contend with Jaune's sisters after all."

"True, but I surely hope that..thing doesn't get involved." Ruby said.

"Agreed." was the response that Weiss and Yang gave to their friend. Since Ruby experienced the horrors that the new Grimm could do first hand, both the huntress and colonel knew that fighting it would either end in death or tragedy. They expressed concern for Izetta should she ever encounter the beast. Their thoughts were disrupted by the arrival of Ashford, who entered the room in silence.

"Oh, Ashford, what is it?" Weiss inquired from her subordinate.

"Ma'am. I have two things to inform you of; first, I received a communication from the Brigadier General, the situation in regards to the trial has reached a minor escalation point. So, her return to here shall be delayed by an extra week." The Lieutenant commander explained.

"I see. Did she have anything to say about what happened with Ruby?" The colonel asked.

"She sends her regards, but otherwise, is recommending that all field operations be monitored in case of the creature's involvement again. There has also been a development with the Atlas Branch." Ashford said.

"What is it?" Weiss said.

"The Atlas Branch has somehow managed to subdue and capture one of the creatures. It is has lead to a startling development." The lieutenant commander said.

All three girls raised an eyebrow at what the man had to say. Ashford continued with "The creature was conditioned to follow orders, and there were hidden cameras that were equipped with pheromone sprayers and programmed to self-terminated upon removal at the location of the beast's capture."

Shock was quick to overcome each one of the girls after Ashford concluded his explanation. Each site of the Grimm's attacks were being monitored by someone, which Weiss suspected as to whom was doing the spying. Both Ruby and her sister knew that Weiss may have figured it out due to her clenching her fists in anger…

"So...that bastard was spying on the scene the whole time." The colonel growled.

"Appears so. After all, scientists will always look for ways to improve their creations so they would always look for ways to gather data." Ashford commented.

Feeling the tension radiating from Weiss after hearing that information, Ruby decided to interject with "What's the other thing that you needed to tell us?"

"Oh. Chieftain Belladonna informed me that her meetings concluded a little early, so she'll be by around ten minutes after noon after she wraps up a few more things." Ashford explained.

"Alright. Thank you for bringing us this information. Dismissed." Weiss said as she released her fists.

Ashford departed, leaving the girls alone once more. Yang walked over from the bed and rested her hand on Weiss' shoulder, asking "You good?"

"Yeah, I just can't believe that _he_ was watching Ruby's attack the whole time." The colonel said.

"We'll find that bastard and his partners one day, and put them to the screws." Yang said reassuringly.

"Anyway, we should prepare before Blake arrives, we're all a little mess lately." Weiss said in a joking tone.

The trio let out a small snicker at the joke, in which they each decided to do different things so they could prepare for Blake's arrival. Ruby drifted back to sleep in the hopes of taking a nap so she would be well rested, Yang splashed some water on her face in a bathroom down the hall, while Weiss went back to her personal quarters so she could get a quick shower in.

 _ **1 hour later**_

 **Edelweiss Hangar Deck**

 **12:20 pm (twenty minutes past noon)**

Yang, having tidied herself up, talked with an engineer who was assisting her on doing some work with Bumblebee. The message was about smoke being reported to have been emanating from the hoverbike's engine. Upon examining it, it was discovered that her engine had overheated almost sparked a fire. The engineer, a gruff, grizzled old man, said " Girl, you got lucky that this thing made it to the Edelweiss without going boom."

"Bumblebee and I have been through hell and back, she's never let me down." Yang said as she used a wrench to fix a certain part.

"Well, these ol' G-360 models traditionally burn out after the 700,000th mile, but looks like you got off lucky." The engineer commented as he replaced another part that appeared to be slightly melted.

"What do you mean?" Yang inquired as finished off the parts on her end.

"Your Bumblebee's model is a G-369, which is a more advanced version of the 360 series. The only reason it was overheated was because the max speed setting had been active for too long." The engineer said as an alarm blared.

Yang spoke up with "Sounds like an airship's pulling in." as she washed and dried her hands before heading out.

As she stepped outside onto a catwalk overlooking the hangar platform, she laid her eyes upon her sight that gave her a sense of pure joy as she laid her eyes on an airship flying the colors of the White Fang. Seeing that banner meant that someone that she had cared deeply about had just arrived. Heading down the steps, Yang watched as her former partner, Blake Belladonna, walked off the airship accompanied by two guards. Running up, Yang shouted "Hey, Blake!"

The Chieftain turned her head to see the familiar face of her former school partner, letting out a sweet smile and responding with "Hey, Yang." as she walked up to her and hugged her.

"It's been too long kitty cat." Yang said as she hugged her teammate back.

After releasing, Yang looked at the unique outfit that Blake was wearing. It consisted of a black, dress-top with some armored sleeve gloves, white pants, and armored heel boots. Her hair was tied up in a formal bun with single section of hair dangling down. Shooting Blake a slight smirk, Yang clicked her tongue and said "I like what I see, nice outfit, Blake."

"Hehe, thank you Yang." Blake said before continuing with "How are you holding up with all this?"

Yang's smile quickly disappeared as she let out a *sigh*, knowing what Blake had meant. As they walked to the trams, Yang started with "It's been rough, Ruby has had a hard time sleeping since it happened."

"True, after something as traumatic as what happened, of course sleep is going to be lost." Blake said as they boarded a tram.

Yang continued with "Yeah. Anyway, Weiss actually worked her ass off to try and find a way for Ruby to walk again."

As they talked about the day Ruby will receive her new legs, the tram screeched to a halt on the medical deck. Upon arriving, they proceeded to Ruby's room where Blake could see the state her former team leader was in. Ruby had dark bags under her eyes, she was still worn down and fatigued, and the obviousness of her missing legs was shown on the blanket as the blanket dropped upon reaching Ruby's thighs. Weiss sat by her side, having refreshed herself since Blake was coming to visit. The chieftain quietly entered the room and said "Hi, Ruby."

The exhausted Ruby raised her head and said with a brimming smile "Hey, Blake. It's been awhile." as the Chieftain walked to Ruby's bedside and hugged her close.

Through a slightly concerned voice, Blake said "I can't believe that you went through that horrible incident." as Ruby hugged her.

"I've been getting that a lot." The fatigued girl said with a slight snicker.

As she released Ruby from her hug, Blake sat up and said "I was in a meeting back home when the call came in, and when I heard what happened, I literally almost broke down crying." as Yang walked up.

"Of course that would happen." The blonde huntress said, catching the attention of Blake. Weiss jumped in with "Even though we have our differences and may not be part of Beacon anymore, We're still Team RWBY."

"And teammates always worry for one another." Ruby interjected with.

Blake gave all three girls a wide smile as they all entered a group hug. As they held each other close, a single image looped in their minds. It was of the happy photo that they took together their final day at Beacon. Even though those days were long gone, they had grown to see each other like a second family. They all released one another, in which Blake said " I actually miss the days when it was just us four fighting in the field."

"Yeah, those days were the best." Yang said enthusiastically.

"I agree, lot less paperwork." Weiss commented.

The girls decided to reminisce about the past, until Blake had to return to Menagerie to sort out other affairs. Yang saw her off, while Weiss laid Ruby back into bed so she could try to rest a little more. After tucking Ruby under her blanket, she said "I really wish your nightmares could at least try to take a coffee break."

"Same here. But….I honestly can't get that thing out of my head." Ruby said, referring to the beast that took her legs and sounding scared by the very thought.

Clasping Ruby's hand, Weiss said in a calming tone "I will be right here with you until Yang returns, in which you will have nothing to fear."

Ruby acknowledged her words, and carefully tried to return to her sleep. Weiss, sitting in the chair next to the bed, held Ruby's hand between her own hands. When she knew that Ruby was about to transition back into a nightmare, she felt the girl's hand tightly clench the hand that held hers. It caused Weiss to feel a great deal of pain, but she had to endure, for the sake of the girl that she loved.

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Taking New Steps**

 **Edelweiss Medical Deck**

 **Administrative Briefing room**

 **9:30 am**

 **The Scheduled Day**

Weiss sat in the Administrative Briefing room of the Edelweiss' medical deck alongside Ashford, with the representatives from the group that was tasked with the oversight of Ruby's surgery. They were a team of 5 suited individuals, with a sixth member, a woman with Auburn hair tied in formal bun, being the leader of the bunch. They were looking over a set of blueprints that were unrolled on the table, which were of a pair of robotic legs. Weiss lifted her head from the table and said "So, what is your plan for the legs, Doctor Rosen?"

The auburn haired woman turned to the Colonel and said " We intend to attach the prosthesis in stages over a 3 day period. We have authorization from our superiors to take as much time as needed."

"So today will be the first stage?" The colonel inquired, receiving a nod from the doctor. She then continued with:

"For today, we will be surgically attaching a set of test legs to her that will allow us to get a base reading on how the legs should be. Furthermore, this would allow Miss Rose to get a general sense for how the prosthesis will feel."

"So, you're going to be performing tests to see if she'll be able to handle the new legs." The colonel said, comprehending their plan.

"Precisely, once we have enough data, we can start Stage 2 tomorrow." Rosen explained.

"I can inform Ruby about your plans, you focus on setting up in Operating Theatre 3." Weiss instructed before adding "Oh, you don't mind if Ruby's sister helps you with the test today? She has been adamant about helping her sister recover."

"I don't mind. Might I ask who the sister is?" Rosen responded to the Colonel.

Weiss responded to the doctor's question with "Her name is Yang Xiao Long." which caused the doctor to respond rather surprisedly:

"Oh, I remember her."

Weiss raised an eyebrow in confusion, in which the doctor clarified with "General Ironwood contracted our company to develop that First Gen arm for her back during the Salem Crisis."

"Oh." was all Weiss could say. The two parted ways as Rosen went to prep her team for the surgery while the Colonel went to Ruby's room to notify her about what would be happening. As she arrived, she saw Yang talking with her, Yang was wearing a jet black t-shirt and yellow shorts with a pair of slippers on her feet. Clearing her throat, Weiss said to the two "I just came back from a meeting with the Doctors."

Yang turned her attention to the door and said "Really? So they've got a plan set up?" in which Weiss responded with a *nod*. She continued with:

"They're gonna have her set up with some stage 1 robotic legs to test so they might have a general idea of how they should improve them for Ruby's use. Tomorrow, they can actually apply some upgrades, before finishing the next day. Yang, The doctors don't mind if you help her out during the tests."

Ruby took a breath and said "Well, today's a big day." as Yang stood up and patted her younger sister's head as a doctor came over to the door and whispered something in the colonel's ear.

"They're ready." Weiss said as Rosen, now dressed in surgical attire, came into the room and said "Hello, Miss Rose. Miss Xiao Long."

"Hello, ma'am." Ruby said as the doctor continued with " My name is Doctor Rosen, I'm the one who will be in charge of your surgery today."

After some introductions, two of Rosen's subordinates prepped Ruby's gurney for mobility as Yang said to her sister " I'll see you when this over."

The blonde huntress walked over to the colonel as the doctors wheeled Ruby down to the operating theater. The two quietly followed them, in which they went to the room where the test would be conducted, finding two other team members setting up a few console devices. Taking a seat on a bench outside, which Yang let out a quick "Huh."

Catching on, the colonel said "Is something up, Yang?"

Yang, feeling nostalgic, decided to tell her former teammate "You know, when we were young, I actually helped Ruby take her first few steps. I was around 4 at the time, and Ruby was about 2."

Weiss, letting out a slight chuckle, said "Awe... that sounds adorable."

Yang chuckled a bit herself and continued with "Yeah, our dad thought so too. He stood right by with his scroll in hand, filming the whole thing. He went on to show our uncle and did his little cutesy dad talk."

Both girls found some sense of humor in the story, which Weiss felt a little nostalgic about her past as well. She thought back to the day when Winter helped her take her own first steps, in which Weiss said to Yang "Do you think Ruby will ever truly overcome the incident emotionally?"

The Blonde huntress let out a *sigh* and said "I don't honestly know, but we need to be ready to pick her back up if she falters."

* * *

 _ **1 hour later**_

Ruby sat in her wheelchair with her new legs as Yang talked with Rosen and Weiss about the test. She looked down at her legs while everyone talked amongst themselves, and looked at the detail. There was metal that looked as if it were a natural part of her legs before transitioning to a grey metal that appeared to be a balance of light and dark. The robotic legs looked like they belonged on some kind of lightweight robot. Yang concluded her conversation with Rosen and walked over to her sister and asked her "You ready?", offering her hand.

Ruby looked to her sister and nodded with "Yeah, let's do this."

Taking her sister's hand, Ruby moved one of her new legs onto the cold floor. After setting her other foot onto the floor, Ruby locked her other hand with Yang's robotic one and rose from her chair. She staggered a bit, but Yang had caught her and said, "Are you alright?"

Looking to her sister, Ruby said " Yeah, I'm alright. Let's do this." and Yang began to carefully back up as they locked arms together.

Ruby followed Yang's rhythm, carefully stepping forward one minor step at a time. Yang flashed back to that same day once before, seeing her four-year-old toddler self walking with her infant sister. That was a happy time for her, and now seeing a recreation of that day occur before her very eyes brought a tear to her eye. Looking to Ruby, and noticed tears in her eyes as well. But these weren't tears of agony, but pure, raw joy at seeing her take her steps once again in light of the incident. As they stopped at a specified mark made by Rosen, Ruby walked into her sister's arms and hugged her tight. Yang hugged her back as well, in which Weiss thought to herself:

" _They say a parent cries tears of pure joy when they see their child walk. But for Ruby, both she and Yang feel joy that something which was stolen has been returned. That is a light kindled in Ruby's darkest time._ " concluding with Weiss drying a little tear of her own.


End file.
